This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.

Brendan Rodgers has backed Liverpool to return to the top of the Premier League with victory at Swansea tonight, but claims his team will be even better in the second half of the season.

The Reds topped the fledgling league table going into the weekend's fixture and will look to improve on a record of three 1-0 wins from three games when they arrive at the Liberty Stadium.

But Rodgers believes Liverpool's strong start is not a flash in the pan, claiming they will grow stronger as the season goes on.

'I said last year that we would be stronger in the second half of the season and it will be the same this time. We will get better and better,' he told the Liverpool Echo.

'It's still very early in the season and I know we can get better. In all the games so far we've seen flashes of the progress in the team. We played some great football against Stoke and created many chances which we didn't take.'

And in a change from the usual athletic cliche employed by football managers, the Liverpool boss claims he views the season not like a marathon, but a sprint hurdles race.

'It's like a 110metres hurdles race and we have many hurdles in front of us,' said the former Swansea boss.

'We have jumped the first three hurdles but that counts for nothing now. We have to approach the next hurdle which is Swansea with the same mentality, passion and drive. It will be a difficult game.'

Rodgers is expected to have Daniel Sturridge available tonight as the striker, who has scored all three of Liverpool's goals this season, has shaken off the thigh problem which kept him out of the England squad last week.